FieldTurf Announces 2008 Soccer Coach and Team of the Year Awards

MONTREAL, Jan. 8, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- FieldTurf announced the winners of its annual Soccer Coach and Team of the Year Awards for the 2008 season today. The awards will be formally presented at the 2009 National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Convention in St. Louis on January 16. Winners were announced in 11 different categories including the national high school team of the year. These awards are based on tabulated votes from FieldTurf Tarkett executives and a panel consisting of Al Albert, Tonya Antonucci, Chris Burt, Brian Ching, Glenn Davis, Anson Dorrance, Jay Hoffman, Bill Irwin, Buzz Lagos, Matt Reis, Steve Sampson, Steve Shak, Aly Wagner, Durward Williams and Tanya Vogel.

This year's winners are:
-- MLS Coach of the Year - Sigi Schmid, Columbus Crew
-- USL Division 1 Coach of the Year - Colin Clarke, Puerto Rico
Islanders
-- USL Division 2 Coach of the Year - Martin Rennie, Cleveland
Internationals
-- USL W-League Coach of the Year - Shek Borkowski, FC Indiana
-- NCAA Division 1 Coach of the Year (Men's Soccer) - Bob Warming,
Creighton University
-- NCAA Division 1 Coach of the Year (Women's Soccer) - Randy Waldrum,
Notre Dame
-- MLS Team of the Year - Columbus Crew
-- USL Team of the Year - Puerto Rico Islanders
-- NCAA Team of the Year - University of Maryland (Men's)
-- National High School Team of the Year (Girls) - The Pennington
School (NJ)
-- National High School Team of the Year (Boys) - Brentwood HS (NY)

SIGI SCHMID, Columbus Crew (MLS Coach of the Year)

One of the Greatest Coaches in MLS History, Schmid ranks second in MLS career victories (113), behind only Bob Bradley (124), currently Head Coach of the U.S. National Team. In nine seasons, Schmid's teams have won 113 games, lost 86 and tied 57. His combined postseason wins (19) are the highest in MLS history.

Schmid first won the MLS Coach of the Year in 1999 while coaching the L.A. Galaxy. His teams reached the MLS Cup final four times and won three division crowns, while compiling a 79-53-32 record during his six-year tenure from 1999-2004.

Former Northern Ireland international Colin Clarke has made a home for himself in San Juan, Puerto Rico. In just under two years, Clarke has transformed the Islanders into one of the elite teams in the USL. In his first campaign, Clarke led the squad to the semi-finals of the USL championship where they were defeated by the Seattle Sounders on penalty kicks. In '08, Clarke led his team into the CONCACAF Champions League and finished in third place. After several bad results at the start of the season, Clarke managed to push the Islanders into an undefeated run that left them on top of the table at the end of the regular season. The team would make it all the way to the finals, only to lose to the second-seeded Vancouver Whitecaps 2-1.

Rennie led the second-year City Stars to the USL Second Division Championship crown with an impressive 2-1 victory over the two-time champion, Charlotte Eagles. Rennie played a key role in bringing the expansion City Stars to Cleveland in 2007 and capped off the inaugural season with USL-2 Coach of the Year honors. Rennie did not slow down in 2008 as he led the City Stars to a second straight undefeated record at home and also recorded the club's first victory over a USL-1 club by defeating the Minnesota Thunder in the U.S. Open Cup. Rennie finishes his Cleveland career with a two-year record of 26-7-16, including a combined 6-3 mark in post-season and U.S Open Cup matches. The coach has been nothing but successful everywhere he has been and is sure to continue the trend with the Carolina RailHawks.

SHEK BORKOWSKI, FC Indiana (USL W-League Coach of the Year):

FC Indiana coach Shek Borkowski hopes to lead the club to more success in 2009 after beating the Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL) national champions Ajax America Women to win the USASA Open Cup. Under Borkowski's leadership, the team compiled an impressive 20-1-1 record and had four of its players named to the W-League Championship All-Tournament team. Borkowski's only loss came in the final of the W-League as FC Indiana fell 2-1 to the Pali Blues.

Creighton's all-time winningest soccer coach, Bob Warming continues to guide one of the elite soccer programs in the country, by molding and motivating student-athletes from around the Midwest, the nation and the world. With 17 consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament and one of the finest collegiate soccer stadiums in the country, Warming continually has his teams poised for a national title run. Over 31 seasons in college soccer, Warming is ranked sixth among active NCAA Division I coaches and 14th in Division I history with 360 career victories. He also is one of only two coaches in Division I to take two different programs to the College Cup Final Four. Warming led Creighton to one of its best seasons in school history. The Blue Jays finished its season with a record of 16-2-2, including a mark of 4-0-1 in league play. The 2008 team captured the MVC regular-season and tournament titles and earned the nation's second overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, where it fell to national champion, Maryland, in the quarterfinals.

Notre Dame head coach Randy Waldrum, whose team was ranked #1 in the nation for most of the season, posted a 26-1 record in 2008, came up short in their bid for a national title as they lost in the final of the NCAA Women's College Cup to the University of North Carolina, 2-1. Waldrum has been able to draw on the lessons learned from 25 combined seasons in the college coaching ranks (349-129-25 record/.719), providing the Irish program with the full package in its head coaching position. Waldrum's .773 career winning percentage is tied for fourth all-time among women's soccer coaches with 10-plus seasons on the Division I level (third among active coaches; see chart).

COLUMBUS CREW (MLS Team of the Year):

After two difficult seasons in Columbus, Sigi Schmid recommended a series of changes to Crew management that would add depth, skill and speed to his team. 2008 proved to be the turning point for the entire organization as the Crew went onto capture its first MLS CUP title under Schmid, who was later named MLS Coach of the Year. Prior to joining the Crew in '06, Schmid led the Los Angeles Galaxy over a period of six seasons to every major club trophy contested in the United States - MLS Cup 2002, 2002 MLS Supporters' Shield, 2001 U.S. Open Cup and 2000 CONCACAF Champions' Cup - and was named the 1999 MLS Coach of the Year.

PUERTO RICO ISLANDERS (USL Team of the Year):

Under the leadership of Irishman Colin Clarke, the Islanders have risen to the top of the USL First Division with an impressive run of form in league and inter-regional competition. Clarke has instilled a philosophy in his team that has produced championship-caliber soccer and helped invigorate fan support on the island since 2007.

MARYLAND TERRAPINS (NCAA Team of the Year):

After losing to Clemson at mid-season, Head Coach Sasho Cirovski challenged his team to focus on attaining the goals they had set during pre-season. The #2-ranked Terrapins responded by winning 17 straight matches en route to their second NCAA crown in four years. Maryland defeated fellow ACC foe, University of North Carolina, 1-0, to win the school's third NCAA title.

THE PENNINGTON SCHOOL (NJ), (National High School Team of the Year - Girls):

The Pennington School's varsity girls' soccer team retained its number one ranking in both the NSCAA National High School Poll with an 18-0 record to conclude the '08 season on a high note. The squad defeated archrival Hopewell Valley in the Mercer County Tournament semifinals and then beat Notre Dame in the championship, giving it back-to-back MCT titles. As well, the Red Raiders knocked off Peddie to win their sixth consecutive Prep A State championship.

BRENTWOOD HS (NY), (National High School Team of the Year - Boys):

Brentwood won the NYSPHSAA Boys Soccer Championship for Class AA by defeating Clarence, 2-1. It was the school's first state title since 1989. Forward Joseph Lopez led the team to a perfect 24-0 record while scoring a team-high 25 goals and 12 assists. Brentwood finished the season ranked first in the final NSCAA National High School Soccer Poll.

In addition to votes from FieldTurf Tarkett representatives, the Annual Soccer Awards are determined by a panel of soccer experts and professional players from around the country which consists of the following members:

-- Tonya Antonucci - Commissioner, Women's Professional Soccer League
-- Chris Burt - Director of Marketing, National Soccer Coaches
Association of America
-- Brian Ching - Veteran forward for the Houston Dynamo of Major
League Soccer and member of the 2006 U.S. Men's World Cup Team
-- Glenn Davis - Sports broadcaster for ESPN and HDNET; former
professional soccer player with the Houston Dynamo
-- Anson Dorrance - Head Coach, University of North Carolina Women's
Soccer
-- Jay Hoffman - U.S. Paralympics National Soccer Team Head Coach,
Virginia
-- Rush Soccer Club Director of Coaching and Region I Boys ODP Head
Coach
-- Bill Irwin - U.S. U-21 Women's National Team Head Coach and
Director of Soccer for the University of Portland
-- Buzz Lagos - Former long-time head coach of the Minnesota Thunder
-- Steve Sampson - Former U.S. National Team Head Coach and Costa
Rican National Team Head Coach
-- Steve Shak - All-Star defender for the Charlotte Eagles of the
USL2 and former #1 draft pick in the 2000 MLS draft
-- Tanya Vogel - Head Coach, George Washington University Women's
Soccer
-- Durward Williams - Director of Strategic Alliances, Sports
Endeavors

FieldTurf Tarkett is the largest entity in the sports surfacing industry and provides unparalleled leasing capabilities, engineering and manufacturing resources. In addition to its world-renowned FieldTurf and Prestige brands of artificial turf, FieldTurf Tarkett provides an equally impressive range of sports flooring products that includes synthetic and hardwood basketball, volleyball and gymnasium flooring, squash and racquetball courts, floor protection and covering systems, and weight room flooring. Also in the range of FieldTurf Tarkett products are indoor and outdoor running tracks including the Beynon track surfaces, the Le Monde track system, playground surfacing, commercial and residential landscaping, and a complete range of tennis and golf surfaces. For more information, visit www.fieldturftarkett.com.